


Too Cold for Comfort

by randomrambler



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Cat is the best of friends, Crushes, Idiots with Crushes, Izzy is only mentioned, M/M, Malec, Malec Teachers AU, Someone tell them it's not this difficult, Teacher Alec Lightwood, Teacher Magnus Bane, chaotic gays, losing the plot with my tags again
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-30
Updated: 2019-09-30
Packaged: 2020-11-08 06:51:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,643
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20831192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/randomrambler/pseuds/randomrambler
Summary: Is it a crush or is it just a case of humans seeking interaction for interaction's sake? Magnus isn't sure but he would give anything if the gorgeous new teacher, Alec Lightwood, would at least TELL him what's on his mind.AU where  Magnus and Alec are teaching colleagues and Alec keeps coming to Magnus' classroom on his lunch break for... reasons, or something.





	Too Cold for Comfort

**Author's Note:**

> This spawned from a throwaway comment in a very chaotic gc. I was inspired and words happened. I hope you enjoy it! Thank you to my unofficial betas justelaura and malecswedlock for reading this. I could never do this without you.
> 
> Trying this on for size: talk about this on twitter with the tag #TCCMalec so I can find you if you like what you see.

_Oh no_, Magnus groaned inwardly as he looked up and saw _him_ loitering outside the door to his classroom. He'd been counting down to his lunch break and now here comes this man, once again, to take up his precious time with inane conversation. This had been going on for weeks since the new teacher had been appointed and while it had been cute at first, now he was just over it. Sure, he couldn't blame the guy for being enamored with him, obviously, but at some point, this would have to stop eventually, in fact, the sooner the better. Magnus missed having these quiet moments between classes to himself, so he could catch up on his reading and savour the peace without his students, whom he loved dearly, nagging him to death. Now though, with the arrival of the new teacher, Alec, and his almost daily trips to Magnus' classroom on the first floor, those moments were few and far between. He'd figured it was a simple crush at first and thought it was adorable even, but after the first week of awkward, stilted conversations that mostly consisted of Alec pacing nervously and blushing furiously anytime Magnus looked in his direction. Yes, the man was cute and his hazel eyes and dark hair were a magical combination that Magnus couldn't ignore, and yes, he found Alec's constant blushing and deep voice almost hypnotic, but he still missed his alone time and he was starting to think he might have to do something to get it back. It would have been one thing if Alec had made any kind of move to ask Magnus out or something, instead, he always stayed ten to fifteen minutes and talked about one mundane thing or another, usually his troublesome students, or his problems with the school administration. He always seemed to be suffering from one malady or another, that Alec Lightwood. Sometimes Magnus marveled that the other man made it to work in one piece when things always seemed to be going wrong for him. Now that he thought about it, Magnus wondered if this string of bad luck was the reason Alec couldn't bring himself to ask him out. Maybe he was afraid things would only end badly between them. He was still thinking about this when Alec finally stopped pacing outside the classroom and made his way inside hesitantly.

_How can he still be this shy after nearly six weeks of this? Magnus wondered incredulously. Outwardly, he plastered a polite smile on his face and mentally prepared for another lost lunch break._

*******************************************************************************

**_TWO WEEKS LATER_ **

Magnus was irritable. He couldn't quite place his finger on why, but every single thing about this day had grated on him and now he was one poorly placed _hello_ away from ripping off someone's head. The most annoying thing was the knowing smirk on his friend Catarina's face when he left her office in a huff after one of his students had the audacity to remind him that their next lecture had been due to start five minutes before the student found him. Now it was his lunch break and he would like to deny it, but he kept looking at the door to his classroom with some anticipation and a slight catch in his breath, instead of finishing the latest book on his list. He usually enjoyed reading and refocusing his mind on the second half of the day during his breaks. That is, he used to enjoy it until Alec had started interrupting him and completely ruined his happy routine. But today, he was sitting in his office, staring at the same line for the umpteenth time, and wondering why Alec hadn't turned up in his office to bother him once in the last two weeks. It's not like he _wanted_ the man to mess up his break, but rather that he'd become accustomed to having company these days. Tall, dark, handsome company that had a beyond adorable blush and a smile that lit up his hazel eyes in ways that left Magnus hungry for more. Magnus shook his head as if to dispel the image of Alec that had come into his mind, but that only left him feeling empty again so he tried to do anything but think of Alec, which meant that he was still thinking about Alec's smiles when his students flooded into class after the break.

"Okay, enough is enough," Catarina said decisively to Magnus, "just go find the guy if you're gonna be pissy about not seeing him."

They were walking out of school and this outburst nearly made Magnus miss a step in his haste to quickly deny that she had hit the mark perfectly.

"Wha-" Magnus spluttered, "What GUY? There is no guy? And I AM NOT BEING PISSY." He huffed.

Catarina snickered loudly with disbelief.

"You went on and on for weeks about this gorgeous piece of man-meat who was crushing on you so hard he wouldn't leave you to your precious lunch alone time," she said, loudly as they walked passed a bus stop. "Then suddenly he stops showing up and your mood takes a dive? Do the math here, Magnus, for the love of my sanity."

"I mean…" Magnus started grudgingly, "it's not like I miss having a stuttering audience in my class every other day," he started. "But you know, he comes over to my class and makes me get used to having him there and what, all of a sudden I'm supposed to act like it never happened? Was it all some game to him? Am I a joke for thinking he was interested at all?" he finished with a measure of sadness.

"Oh Magnus," Catarina said with understanding in her voice, "I'm sure it's nothing like that. You always said you enjoyed having him there after a while, right? Maybe you could make the trip to his class to find out what's happened." She suggested.

They had come up to the front of Catarina's building and Magnus was nodding absentmindedly as he chewed over her words.

"Maybe. I just don't want to make an even bigger fool of myself, you know?" He said.

"Well, this mood isn't sustainable so you have to do something. SOON." Catarina replied.

"Thanks, Cat. I'm sorry I was pissy," Magnus said sheepishly. "See you tomorrow." He finished as she made her way inside the building and he continued the short walk to his flat.

*************************************************************************************

** _ONE WEEK LATER_ **

Magnus decided to break his routine for lunch this time and go for a walk instead. It was unseasonably cold but his next class wasn't until much later so it wouldn't make sense for him to just sit at his desk and miss Alec all afternoon. And he did miss Alec. He'd given up on denying it now, and had gone full-blown into "sighing loudly and missing Alec" as Cat liked to tease him. Of course, the simple solution to all this was to approach the other man and find out why he'd cut him off so abruptly but Magnus was letting his pride and fear dictate his actions. He was too proud to go chasing any person, he felt, and also he was scared of what would happen if it turned out Alec didn't want anything more to do with him. He thought that would definitely destroy him. So instead, he sighed, loudly, and he avoided Alec and just missed him from afar. Today, he took his packed pastrami on rye sandwich and his bottle of organic orange juice, one of the few luxuries he allowed himself on a teacher's salary and made his way to the park next to the school for a quiet lunch outdoors. He didn't come to the park often, but when he did, he had a favourite bench right behind a particularly tall bush, and underneath a sprawling tree. It was open enough to allow proper sunlight and let him observe anyone strolling through the park, but also secluded enough to keep him from prying eyes since he always wanted to be alone. He wondered if Alec had been to this park lately as he walked into the park, thinking to himself that Alec's hair and the golden flecks in his eyes would look spectacular under the light out here today. He was so lost in his thoughts that it took him a moment to realise that his spot was already occupied.

"No, no, not here too. Please god, I just want today to be good. PLEASE." Magnus groaned.

As he made his way around the bushes to the bench he was shocked to discover Alec sitting there, in the middle of a phone call. The taller man was so animated and involved that he didn't notice Magnus standing in front of him, which allowed Magnus to take in the view in front of him appreciatively.

"Of course not, Izzy!" Alec was saying, "and no, you should not give the phone to Simon! Because this has nothing to do with him… or you for that matter!"

Magnus was unsure how to proceed now. On the one hand, it was rude to eavesdrop and he'd been avoiding Alec deliberately for a week, but on the other hand, he'd never seen Alec looking this alive and he was transfixed.

"Iz, listen to me," Alec continued with his phone call, "I'm not trying to avoid anything, I just don't want to be rude anymore. Ohmygod it's not that big a deal!" At this point, he turned his head in Magnus' direction finally and a look of shock came over his face, his eyes widening to the point where Magnus was scared they might pop out of his head.

"Um, shit, Izzy, I-" Alec stuttered, "gotta go, love you, bye." He finished hastily.

Magnus felt a stab of jealousy hearing Alec tell whoever it was that he loved them, but he buried it deep down and put on a very polite smile.

"Hi," Magnus said.

"Hey. Hi. Um…" Alec said blushing again.

_This can't all be in my head, right? _Thought Magnus once again. Outwardly he said,

"I must apologise for my rudeness. I didn't mean to listen in. It's just that I came out here for lunch today and this is my spot and I wasn't expecting to find anyone here so I guess I just sort of lost track of my manners in my surprise." He rolled his eyes at himself inwardly now because he couldn’t believe he was rambling.

"Oh!" Alec said and looked around like he expected to find MAGNUS BANE branded on some leaf or the park bench.

"Well not literally," Magnus started explaining, feeling himself blush a little.

"Of course not," Alec said, laughing.

It was a burst of deep, velvety laughter that slipped passed Magnus' defences and carved out a seat for itself somewhere inside him. Leaving him with a warmth that he hadn't realised was missing until now.

"Of course not," Alec said again. "I'm not looking. I just..." he seemed hesitant to continue.

"Well if you're not completely offended then perhaps I can join you while I have my lunch?" Magnus asked coyly. Now that he'd run into Alec he wasn't going to let the man go without at least a proper conversation.

"Are you sure?" Alec asked, "I mean, I only came out here to talk to my sister so you can have your spot back now. I wouldn't want to force you to spend any more time with me." He said, standing up and indicating that Magnus could take possession of the bench now.

Magnus was exceedingly pleased that the 'I love you' was to a sibling but also dismayed at Alec's turn of phrase at the end of the sentence. _Force him to spend more time with me? He wondered. What could that possibly mean?_

"Yes, I'm sure, and it would be my pleasure to spend any time with you. To tell you the truth, I was starting to wonder if I'd offended you or something. You've been avoiding my class like the plague these last few weeks." Magnus said tentatively. He figured he might as well get it out now before he got even more invested in this one-sided thing he had going.

"WHAT?" Alec exclaimed with alarm. "Avoiding you? Oh. Oh no. Not at all. I- I mean- I was- this is embarrassing. I felt terrible coming to your class all that time," he continued "I know you probably resented the intrusion in your lunch break. It's just that the central heating in the building was on the fritz so my class was freezing, and yours was so nice and warm. I couldn't help myself to be honest. But now that the heating has been fixed, I figured there's no reason for me to bother you anymore." He finished. He'd started pacing again in that manner that Magnus had missed but Magnus couldn't fully enjoy the sight as the full meaning of his words sunk in.

"Oh," Magnus said. If it was possible to die of embarrassment, he was sure he'd already be dead now. Here he was working himself up into a frenzy because of Alec and the other man was only interested in his class for decidedly less interesting reasons. He felt like such an idiot now. He could feel all the blood rushing to his face and he couldn't help the wave of disappointment that came over him now. _Of course, he's not interested in you, dumbass_, he thought to himself.

"Well…" Magnus started, unsure of where to go now that it had become clear that his assumptions about Alec had been completely wrong, "you can still stay, I guess. I was never mad at you for coming to my class, even if it was just for the heat." He said weakly. His face had lost some of its brightness now and he was afraid Alec would sense the dullness in him and take it the wrong way again, but there was nothing he could do to stop it. He noticed Alec watching him closely and raised his eyebrows in a silent question.

"I…" Alec started with some hesitation, "I mean, I did enjoy our time together. I just didn't want to be **_that_** guy, you know? The one who's always around when you just want to sit in your space and enjoy your alone time. I just kind of let the cold get the better of me." He said with a small laugh, as he moved to sit down next to Magnus who'd taken up his spot on the park bench. "You were so nice to let me come in so much when you clearly didn't want me there. I think I was starting to forget doing things any other way by the time the heating got fixed." He said with another shy smile.

Magnus was starting to get whiplash now because he could suddenly sense that maybe all was not lost after all. Maybe if all else failed, at least they could be friends, real friends now, and he could learn more about Alec and be the cause of some of the laughter he'd come to adore so much. He smiled properly and offered Alec half of his sandwich as he decided this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship, and maybe more down the line if the universe decided to work in his favour for once.

"I'll tell you a secret," Magnus said, leaning in conspiratorially, "I may have missed seeing you in my class the last few weeks. You know you can come any time you want, for the dashing company, if nothing else." He finished cheekily.

Alec laughed loudly at that, taking his first bite of the sandwich and Magnus knew this would definitely work.

**Author's Note:**

> Please drop kudos AND comments if you enjoyed it. Also find me on twitter zeejade88


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